Benefits
1. Great for cardiovascular conditioning, a very effective form of HIIT (high intensity interval training).
2. Improves total body strength. The art of throwing a punch involves multiple muscles of the whole body, legs, core and arms.
3. Improves balance, co-ordination and spatial awareness, involving co-ordinated footwork and the development of reactive movement strategies.
4. Reduces stress. A safe way to let off steam and release any frustrations.
5. Changes body composition, tones muscle and burns fat.
How to do it
First, practise your boxing stance:
Stand with feet hip-width apart, one slightly in front of the other, knees slightly bent. Your rear arm and leg should be your dominant side (so whichever arm you write and/or throw with).
Bring fists up, one slightly in front of the other
Jab, jab, cross, cross:
Stand in a boxing stance with fists up at cheekbone level and elbows close to the body.
Punch lead (front) fist straight in front of you at head level, rotating torso and fully extending arm. And come up onto your toes. Make contact with the bag with the knuckles at the base of your fingers.
Bring fist back close to you quickly, holding it in front of your face, with elbow close to the body.
Repeat on the same side, quickly.
Punch rear fist straight in front of you at head level, rotating torso and fully extending arm.
Bring fist back close to you quickly, holding it in front of your face with elbow close to the body.
Repeat with rear arm, at a slightly slower rhythm than the first two strikes.
Repeat the four-strike combination as fast as you can without stopping, then move around the bag and continue this combination.
Tip: Keep your elbows as close to your body as you can
How much to do
Continue this sequence for 2 minutes, then rest for 30 seconds. Repeat for a total of 10-15 minutes. You can build up to longer durations. You can also increase your work to rest ratio as you feel comfortable.
Jab-cross, hook-hook, uppercut-uppercut
A more advanced combination to use.
How to
1. Stand in boxing stance with fists up at cheek level and elbows close to the body.
2. Punch lead fist straight in front of you at head level, rotating torso and fully extending arm.
3. Bring fist back close to you quickly, holding it in front of your face with elbow close to the body.
4. Repeat the motion using rear fist.
5. Pivot lead arm so elbow is in line with shoulder and thumb is pointing up.
6. Punch across and imagine hitting the target on the side of the face.
7. Bring fist back close to you quickly, holding it in front of your face with elbow close to the body.
8. Pivot rear arm so elbow is in line with shoulder and thumb is pointing up.
9. Punch across and imagine hitting the target on the side of the face.
10. Bring fist back close to you quickly, holding it in front of your face with elbow close to the body.
11. Squat down slightly and tuck lead elbow to hip bone on same side.
12. Lift with legs, rotate core and lead shoulder forward while driving lead hand up into the bag with a lifting motion. Make contact with the bag with the larger knuckles.
13. Bring fist back close to you quickly, holding it in front of face with elbow close to the body.
14. Squat down slightly and tuck rear elbow to hip bone on same side.
15. Lift with legs, rotate core and lead shoulder forward while driving lead hand up into the bag with a lifting motion. Make contact with the bag with the larger knuckles.
16. Repeat the entire combination.
Tip: Jab/cross strikes are straight punches. Hooks include rotation side to side. Uppercuts combine lifting and rotating movements.
To add another dimension to the combinations, after you have thrown the combination, do a squat prior to throwing the next combination.
